Ebay - misleading/false ad and seller - BUYERS BEWARE!

[PTR]

I inquired on the Marriott MountainSide "SKI" week below on Ebay and got the following response from the Seller. The seller also chose NOT to post my question on their ad (I wonder why!? - )

From: eBay Member: alltimevacations-2008 <alltim_gy6326lhf@members.ebay.com>
Sent: Monday, February 20, 2012 7:29 AM
Subject: Re: Details about item: sent a message about MARRIOTT MOUNTAINSIDE SKI PARK CITY UTAH TIMESHARE #26095972780
Seller has responded to your question about this item

Do not respond to the sender if this message requests that you complete the transaction outside of eBay. This type of offer is against eBay policy, may be fraudulent, and is not covered by buyer protection programs. Learn More.


It is a Silver season which is also considered SKI seasom.

Thank You
- alltimevacations-2008
Click "respond" to reply through Messages, or go to your email to reply

To: alltimevacations-2008Subject: Details about item: sent a message about MARRIOTT MOUNTAINSIDE SKI PARK CITY UTAH TIMESHARE #260959727808Sent Date: Feb-19-12 20:53:07 PST
Dear alltimevacations-2008,

Why does your ad say "SKI" when this is a silver week? Is "silver" ski season?
-
MARRIOTT MOUNTAINSIDE SKI PARK CITY UTAH TIMESHARE

Item Id: 260959727808
End time: Feb-22-12 21:20:54 PST
Seller:
alltimevacations-2008 (347 )

97.5% Positive Feedback
Member since Oct-24-08 in United States
Location: TN, United States

Listing Status: This message was sent while the listing was active.

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As any one who calls Marriott or looks at a calendar knows SILVER is spring/fall aka "Mud season". It begins mid-April and all Park City ski resorts, PCMR, Canyons and Deer Valley all close before this time. I have lived here 10 years and only a couple of times did the resorts stay open until April 15th. It is extremely rare. Week 47 is Thanksgiving and weather provided 1-3 ski runs will be open to ski. Marriott nor anyone who actually ski's on snow "considers Silver SKI season". The seller did not allow my question to be posted on his ad. The ad also has a winter snow photo as the main image and describes it as "Situated at the base of Park City Ski Resort, this Utah ski-in/ski-out resort offers valet skier services alongside "the greatest snow on earth." It appears this seller is either uneducated in the product or is purposely intending to mislead. BUYERS BEWARE! I see there are as many as 25 bids on other auctions. I fear his deals are "too good to be true".

 

[ampaholic]

all eBay ads are "buyer beware" - meaning you must know what is for sale as the PCC likely does not.

 

[ronparise]

I inquired on the Marriott MountainSide "SKI" week below on Ebay and got the following response from the Seller. The seller also chose NOT to post my question on their ad (I wonder why!? - )

From: eBay Member: alltimevacations-2008 <alltim_gy6326lhf@members.ebay.com>
Sent: Monday, February 20, 2012 7:29 AM
Subject: Re: Details about item: sent a message about MARRIOTT MOUNTAINSIDE SKI PARK CITY UTAH TIMESHARE #26095972780
Seller has responded to your question about this item

Do not respond to the sender if this message requests that you complete the transaction outside of eBay. This type of offer is against eBay policy, may be fraudulent, and is not covered by buyer protection programs. Learn More.


It is a Silver season which is also considered SKI seasom.

Thank You
- alltimevacations-2008
Click "respond" to reply through Messages, or go to your email to reply

To: alltimevacations-2008Subject: Details about item: sent a message about MARRIOTT MOUNTAINSIDE SKI PARK CITY UTAH TIMESHARE #260959727808Sent Date: Feb-19-12 20:53:07 PST
Dear alltimevacations-2008,

Why does your ad say "SKI" when this is a silver week? Is "silver" ski season?
-
MARRIOTT MOUNTAINSIDE SKI PARK CITY UTAH TIMESHARE

Item Id: 260959727808
End time: Feb-22-12 21:20:54 PST
Seller:
alltimevacations-2008 (347 )

97.5% Positive Feedback
Member since Oct-24-08 in United States
Location: TN, United States

Listing Status: This message was sent while the listing was active.

Here are more items from this seller

EAGLE TRACE AT MASSANUTTEN RESORT SKI GOLF VIRGINIA TIMESHARE
MARRIOTT DESERT SPRINGS VILLAS II GOLF PALM DESERT CALIFORNIA TIMESHARE
70 VACATION INTERNATIONALE POINTS BEACH GOLF HAWAII TIMESHARE
PUEBLO BONITO LOS CABOS BEACH GOLF CABO SAN LUCAS MEXICO TIMESHARE
MARRIOTT MAUI OCEAN CLUB BEACH GOLF HAWAII TIMESHARE

1 Bid $1.00
Shipping: Pickup Only
0 Bids $1.00
Shipping: Pickup Only
7 Bids $110.51
Shipping: Pickup Only
0 Bids $1.00
Shipping: Pickup Only
25 Bids $825.00
Shipping: Pickup Only

Visit seller's other item

As any one who calls Marriott or looks at a calendar knows SILVER is spring/fall aka "Mud season". It begins mid-April and all Park City ski resorts, PCMR, Canyons and Deer Valley all close before this time. I have lived here 10 years and only a couple of times did the resorts stay open until April 15th. It is extremely rare. Week 47 is Thanksgiving and weather provided 1-3 ski runs will be open to ski. Marriott nor anyone who actually ski's on snow "considers Silver SKI season". The seller did not allow my question to be posted on his ad. The ad also has a winter snow photo as the main image and describes it as "Situated at the base of Park City Ski Resort, this Utah ski-in/ski-out resort offers valet skier services alongside "the greatest snow on earth." It appears this seller is either uneducated in the product or is purposely intending to mislead. BUYERS BEWARE! I see there are as many as 25 bids on other auctions. I fear his deals are "too good to be true".

In the sellers defense..(unless the ad was changed at your request) I dont see anything in the ad saying that this is a ski week (only that the resort is a ski resort) I would think that most folks know that if you are going to ski in North America, you need a winter week,,,,and the ad clearly states the weeks that this ownership can reserve (spring and fall)
I realize that the word "ski" is in the headline, and that there are some pretty pictures with snow, but I dont think anyone that wants a ski week would be misled by this ad

This kind of fluff is much easier for me to accept than the ones that say 3 bedrooms, when there are no three bedroom at the property, A sellers mistakes can work in your favor too..I have also taken advantage of a sellers mistakes when I bought something advertised as a floating week, that was actually a special event week and the studio I bought that was actually a one bedroom


If you are buying on ebay, I would advise that you know your seller and that you know what you are buying..and dont bid until all your questions are answered

 

[DaveNV]

I agree with Ron. With ebay ads, I always recommend a potential buyer ask for an estoppel to make sure exactly of what is being auctioned. PCCs rarely get all the facts right, since they boilerplate most/all of their ads. Mistakes are really common. But with due diligence, some real gems can be purchased from sellers who are clueless to what they're really selling.

The ones I love are those that say "Ocean View" or "Beach" and list a resort that is a long way from the sand, or where you have to go onto the rooftop and look between other buildings to see a teensy patch of water. THAT, to me, is really misleading.

There's one currently running on ebay that says "Waikiki" in the title, but the resort is on another island. No matter how you measure it, that's a real stretch.

Dave

 

[PTR]

In the sellers defense..(unless the ad was changed at your request) I dont see anything in the ad saying that this is a ski week (only that the resort is a ski resort) I would think that most folks know that if you are going to ski in North America, you need a winter week,,,,and the ad clearly states the weeks that this ownership can reserve (spring and fall)
I realize that the word "ski" is in the headline, and that there are some pretty pictures with snow, but I dont think anyone that wants a ski week would be misled by this ad

I emailed the seller and that was his response...
It is a Silver season which is also considered SKI seasom.

Thank You
- alltimevacations-2008

Silver is NOT considered ski season. Call Marriott and ask. The Seller mislead in the ad title, replied that silver is considered ski and then did not post my question on his Ebay page of questions as if to deter someone from realizing what I did. Seller has no defense - sounds like a blatant attempt to misprepresent or in the least know what they are even selling.

Ads like this and buyers who are tricked are why we had to help more than one person who bid on and even bought the wrong thing on Ebay.
I have no mercy for someone attempting to sell Utah real estate without a license on Ebay. They should get a license as the state requires and get educated in the product. If they are the owner then they should know what they are selling. Otherwise, the are attempting to mislead by emailing a potential buyer "silver is also considered ski season".... I live in Park City, we call it "mud season" for a reason.

 

[Pmuppet]

Definitely verify information before you bid

I agree with Ron as i also would classify myself as taking advantage of a timeshare selling agent who was incompetent.

In my case, i saw an even year fixed week #7 at whistler for sale in late 2008. It caught my eye because i had been searching for that week. After further thought, it dawned on me that this was the same arrival date as OPENING CERMONIES of the olympics!

My max bid went up significantly as a result. The listing agent mentioned NOTHInG about the olympics in their ad. I think they figured it out afterwards cause they tried to back out of the deal, but i wouldnt let them. We paid about $3k for the timeshare deed including MF, and weekly rentals were going for $4k.

As a result of their incompetence, i saved about $5,000 on that transaction and was able to spend a week at the olympics. A memory my wife, i, and our family will never forget.

 

[Patri]

As a result of their incompetence, i saved about $5,000 on that transaction and was able to spend a week at the olympics. A memory my wife, i, and our family will never forget.

Awesome. What a priceless memory. Few get the chance to attend ever.

 

[theo]

Yes, but...

If they are the owner then they should know what they are selling.

I don't disagree at all with your statement --- and I am certainly a strong advocate for factual accuracy in any and all publicly disseminated statements and / or advertising, whether personal or commercial.

That being said, I would point out that many eBay mega-sellers are actually not the owners of what they are advertising in the first place. They are instead often little more than a "disposal" outlet and mechanism for weeks acquired by some PCC's Power of Attorney procedure. Accordingly, such "sellers" quite frequently know little or nothing about the property, any "seasonal" reservation / use rules or restrictions, etc.

I'm certainly not defending either incompetence or inaccuracy in advertising; I'm instead merely noting the clear distinction between uninformed ignorance vs. deliberate and willful "false advertising". In either case of course, incorrect and wrong information is still equally incorrect and wrong.

 

[T_R_Oglodyte]

Always important to do due diligency. I once purchased a timeshare that the mega-seller disposal outfit thought was an every other year unit because the deed said it was EOY. Turned out that actually meant it was every year usage - an even year unit was "EY", and odd year unit was "OY" and both even and odd years was "EOY".